Monday Made Its-Back to School Resources and Gifts

I'm so excited to say I actually "met" Tara in Vegas and she's even sweeter in person if that's possible!

 

 I have a few things to share today:

 

 

I really LOVE the fashion hats from Buckle, but they're about $45 a piece, so I decided to try to make my own! I bought the hat and supplies at Hobby Lobby. I figured the hat was only $6.99 (and I used a 40% off coupon), so if I messed it up, it wouldn't be too bad. :)

In the first picture you may notice an applique, but I decided not to use it after I started "blinging" out my hat. I only used rhinestones and pearls and it really changes the whole look. I used the E6000 glue which means these jewels will NEVER fall off, but it leaves an odor. It's only been a day and the odor is already fading. I think I would try a hot glue gun if I did it again.

I know some of you don't want to think about it, but some people are actually heading back to school soon! I finally finished the last wreath of my wreath bundle craftivity set!

Here's the Back to School Reading Wreath-perfect for students to complete on their first reading assignment to show off at open house!

 

 

I made these blog buttons for my buddies for our Vegas trip so we would be recognizable to new friends. :) So many of us memorize the blog button, so it's nice when you can put a face to it!

 

 I also made notebooks for my blogging buddies. I printed their logo on full sheet labels. I used my large scallop punch to cut out the logos and placed them on top of the notebooks. I printed stickers on full size labels that read "handmade by Joanne" for the back of the notebooks. I used my 1" circle punch to make these.

 

A little ribbon and a matching pen and I was all set! :)

 

 This would be a great gift for your teammates!

I also printed and laminated my Back to School Scoot {FREEBIE}. Grab this goodie here, but please read about how I plan to use it here first. You will gain valuable information that will set the tone for the year!

 

I hope you found some ideas for your classroom or your head today! :) Go check out all the other fabulous ideas on Tara's Monday Made It!

 

Monday Made It: Back to School Gifts, Reading Cart, New Product

It's Monday Made It with my friend Tara! (I'm back to school today, students return next Monday).

I made some goodies for my teammates to get them excited about being back to school!

I got this adorable idea from Around the Kampfire. Now, let me just say...it's not that easy finding Chevron composition books! After scouring all the office supply stores, I found them at Walgreen's (well, I had to go to three different ones to get enough!).

 I think our meetings will be more fun with these notebooks! :) I only have 4 teammates, but I have to make them for my children's teachers and a few close friends!

 

I also made them these teacher goodie bags! These bags included pens, whiteout, highlighters, pencils, post-its, and post-it labels. I like to spoil my teammates and friends and get them excited about their summer ending!

 

We have an AMAZING office staff at our school. I made these personalized hand sanitizer bottles.

This is just a transparency placed inside the bottle! Print whatever you'd like on a transparency (laser printer), cut it out, roll it and place in the bottle. I used an orangewood stick to position it.

Tie a cute ribbon around it. Voila!

Are you ready to see the ultimate guided reading cart??!! I can't even tell you how excited I am about this project!! As soon as I saw this cart I fell in love with it! Let me tell you about this beauty! It's on wheels, the drawers are white plastic, so it can hide clutter if it's not organized, the drawers come out of both side so you can use it a tub, AND the bottom drawer can hold hanging file folders!!!

Do you have goose bumps, are you salivating, are you already in your car driving to go get one?? LOL!

I used full size labels to decorate the front of my cart.

The first drawer has all my "reading rings", Citing Evidence Rings, Interactive Reading Comprehension, Non-Fiction Text Features, Reading Questions: Before, During & After. 

The second drawer holds our Reading Response Menus.

And the bottom drawer will be used to hold my Guided Reading With Post-Its Binder, lesson plans, graphic organizers, Scholastic News, and incomplete group work.



This cart is going to be such a wonderful addition to my classroom! It will keep me organized and all my materials at my fingertips! It's made by Hefty and I bought it at Target (not sure if other retailers carry it or not).

 

 

My last Made It is my most recent product: Back to School Reading & Writing: Activities to Build Community in Your Classroom. This summer I finally compiled all the activities and mentor texts I use with my class at the beginning of every school year. This is one of my favorite times of the year when we get to bond and form our class family. I love the discussions these books bring to our classroom. These texts and activities will be remembered all year! I've selected popular books that can be found in most media centers or local libraries, but I've also included SafeShare video links to all of the books to listen/watch online! I'd like to give at least one away!

PIN TO WIN!

Pin either image of my product, copy & paste the URL in the comments, and include your email address so I can send you the prize!

I will giveaway one pack for every ten comments made! Winner will be notified Wednesday.

 

Be sure to check out all the other fabulous ideas linked up to Fourth Grade Frolics!



Monday Made Its: Teacher Gift and a New Idea

It's time for Monday Made It with Tara!

First up are some more hand sanitizer gifts! This is so easy and personalized that I had to make them! Last year one of my colleagues had hand sanitizer with poems in them at the front desk of our school and I thought it just added such a personal touch! **The monogrammed ones are my favorite!

Step 1: Create a design and print on regular copy paper.

 

Step 2: Copy your paper onto transparency film-bring to printer unless you have a laser printer.

Step 3: Cut and roll paper to fit it top of bottle. The transparency film will unroll.

Step 4: Use a cuticle stick to straighten.

 Easy, peasy and customized for your class or your friends!

 Here are a few I made for my teaching buddies:

I decided to make a class set of those folders I've seen pinned everywhere. I am hoping these are a great addition to my back to school list-it seems genius! I will use mine for classwork, centers, morning work, and paper. (I chose categories that won't take up too much space, since I'm not sure how this new idea will work). Has anyone used these before? I'd love to hear from you!

 

 Here are a couple of tips I learned along the way since I couldn't find the pin when I needed it. Not sure if this is the correct way, but I will share how I made mine. I cut the folder without brads to a height of 11 inches so it would fit in my 3 hole punch. I had to open the folder back up to hole punch one side at a time-folded wouldn't fit. My BEAUTIFUL electric hole punch is at school...it is the best investment and is AMAZING! I like all my folders to be matching-quick management tool when you want to quickly scan the room to see if everyone is ready. I'm hoping this will be quick and easy for my students to find their work all in one spot!

I made a class set of my Back to School Autobiographies-I'm so excited to have these done! I'd be more excited if I knew WHO was in my class, but I have to have patience! (my worst quality!)

 Can't wait to have my students decorate the composition book covers to represent themselves!  (Confession: I have a binding machine at home.) I got a great deal on it! (at Office Depot, of course!) Not until I bought this about two years ago did I realize how much I love having one at home! I don't use it much after school starts, but during summer it's a MUST HAVE! So, I'm sharing this on sweet Sabra's Must Have linky!

 Isn't she a beauty??!! :O)

 

Can't wait to see what everyone else made this past week! So many creative teachers!

Don't forget to link up this Saturday for Spark Student Motivation! What have you been planning or making to get your students excited for back to school?

 

Tunes and Tried It Tuesday!

I'm very excited to be linking up with Nick's first linky party, Tunes Tuesday! What a great resource to teach grammar! He's so clever!

 

 I'm sharing "One Thing" by One Direction, my two youngest have played this song so many times I thought of it immediately to teach figurative language! Students can highlight, circle, or underline the examples of figurative language, then label them correctly.

Click here for free lyrics with directions.

 

Here is the video with lyrics you may find helpful.

I like to show the video with lyrics first then have them read over the lyrics on the handout and identify all the figurative language.

Students love music and what a motivating way to learn!

 

 

Now I'm linking up with one my favorite girls, Holly, for Tried It Tuesday again.

 

My two Tried Its this week are inspired by Pinterest! You know I always pin these "helpful hints" and never do anything with them, well, because I wanted to "TRY" something for Holly's linky, I forced myself to complete a task! :O)

First up is my shower-don't judge, I had to get a step stool to take these pictures, so it gets neglected. We have hard water in Florida and it builds up pretty fast.

 I had read on Pinterest that if you use vinegar on your showerhead, all the water buildup would easily come off. (Wasn't sure if I believed it!) I wrapped a Ziploc bag filled with vinegar around my showerhead and let it sit for several hours. 

After a few hours...voila! I just wiped it off and it came out this shiny! :O)

(It doesn't smell great, but looks good!)

My next Tried It was to recycle an old Bath & Body Works candle jar. 

 

  

First freeze it and let it get hard. Then use a knife to scrape out the candle wax. (The wicks at the bottom are glued on pretty tightly to be careful!) 

Then peel off the side and bottom labels. If it doesn't come off easily, use Goo Gone.

Be careful when you wash it out, it's slippery...you may drop it and crack it like I did! Luckily, I had one more used candle! Oooh, I was so mad-which is why this post is so late today-had to start all over.

I added some mints and a label and now I have a cute container for my desk! Pretty cute right? All these years, I've been throwing away perfectly good candy dishes! :O)

You can use them in your house for cotton balls or office supplies. 

I hope you're having a great week! I'd love to hear from you, leave a comment below!

***Just a heads up...if you're not following me on Facebook, you might want to start soon! I'm having all kinds of giveaways next week for a special event!

Monday Made It: Teacher Gifts and New Product

 Mondays are a great day during summer! Why? We get to link up with Tara for her Monday Made It! It forces me to get a few things accomplished each week! This week was a little tough to get my tasks done, just got back last night from New York! What a looooooong drive! Traffic and rainy weather didn't help! We got to visit many sites and dear friends, but it's nice to be home.

 

My first made it are these adorable, personalized hand sanitizer bottles for my children's teachers. I saw them on Etsy a couple of weeks ago ranging in price from $5-12 PLUS shipping! I knew I could make these cute gifts for less!

 

I also like to take care of the teachers on my team, so I made these binder clips for them. I found the clips at Dollar Tree and I used the 80 count labels.

 

 

 

I also completed another product for my Teachers Pay Teachers Store...Multiplication Rings. I try to offer my students incentives and resources to help them master these facts because you know we don't have extra time to "practice and drill" these facts all day!

I have a class set of these Crystal Light containers-I've been saving them all year to hold these rings. I decorated the taller container with scrapbook paper, the shorter one has been left clear. In the past, they've kept them in their pencil boxes.

***Want to win them? Pin this product and paste the URL in the comments section. (Make sure I have your email address if you're not a blogger, so I can email you this goodie!) Winners will be announced tomorrow!

 

 

 

 

Go check out all the other great Monday Made Its!